Tanzania media: Are We "Wool gathering" the East Africa Federation?

Veteran Journalist Charles Onyango-Obbo's piece in the current The East African (October 23 – 29) struck a cord in me when I read it yesterday. It 'excavated' a touchy issue that has been tugging at my heart of late.

I have tried to 'force' the picture of Tanzania holding 'the federation baby' in its arms, to no avail. The whole shebang just does not jell. It is incongruous, to say the least. And why?

The piece, titled Let's face it, the Tanzania media is not being very neighbourly, divulged that of late there has been a section of the Tanzania media that has been fomenting inimical attitudes towards the East African Community.

Surely, have we come this far (the millions of dollars of East Africans taxpayers money that have been used notwithstanding) just to sacrifice our just-about-to-be-born baby on the altar of misunderstanding and misconstruction? Tumemla ng'ombe mzima, je tushindwe na mkia?

The press, in any country in the world, should know better than to involve itself in hate campaigns against anyone. It should, however, come to clear the air and set the record straight.

A certain Tanzanian website wantonly runs a hate campaign against other East Africans. It impugns other East Africans and pits them against one another. Check the site HERE.


The press should know better than this. Its efforts should gravitate towards empowering its citizenry with the right information that will help guide them on what to think. Furthermore, the press is said to be the watchdog of society so it ought to know better than to take matters personal.

Journalism’s first loyalty is to citizens: always working for the good of the citizens; determined to stand on the roof tops and shout down any manner of moral vice – not trying to glorify the inglorious!
Someone once said: The press is the people’s university.
People of all walks glean snippets of knowledge and information from the press that go a long way in influencing them to form personal judgments and opinions.
Journalists have a specific brief. Why should their special mandate be sacrificed on the altar of compromise and complacency?

When the 'federation story' is viewed against this backdrop, one is left wondering whether the 'vehicles of information in Tanzania' will play to its tune.

East Africans, let's ask ourselves these questions before it is too late:
• Are we wasting our time here?
• Are we wool gathering "the East Africa Federation" into focus or being "insensitively" realistic?